If you have a sprinkler system, like many of our customers in Olathe, Overland Park, and surrounding areas, you save a lot time and your lawn and landscaping look great. But how much water are you wasting?
You’d be surprised at how many customers we find during our inspections who have leaks or malfunctioning heads or other problems that waste a lot of precious water. Their water bills were going higher, but they were paying for water that was going down the drain.
So what can you do to conserve water and money this season? There are three main areas to look at -proper schedules, fine tuning, and annual maintenance.
Set Your Sprinkler System to Proper Schedules
If you set your automatic controller one time and let it run all season without adjusting it, you’re wasting a lot of water.
- Watering schedules should be based on the Evapotranspiration (ET) rate for your area. We can calculate how much water your landscape needs and change your watering schedule throughout the season with ET information.
- Water early in the morning – set your controller to water before 10:00 AM to reduce evaporation.
Fine Tune Your Sprinkler System
Checking sprinkler heads, pressure rates, runoff and drainage will help you pinpoint problem areas that waste water.
- Regulate your pressure – if you notice misting or overspray, your water pressure is too high. Turn down the flow control at the valve or use pressure-regulating heads. If pressure seems high everywhere, you can install a pressure-regulating valve at the point of connection
- Match sprinkler heads – Make sure your heads in each zone are the same so it all gets equal amounts of water. Spray heads and rotors apply different amounts of water. If your heads are unmatched some areas get more water than others
- Watch for runoff – If run-off occurs soon after watering begins, use the “Cycle & Soak” feature on your controller or set multiple start times for each zone to allow the water to soak in after each “cycle.”Look for wet spots – Look for suspicious spots in your landscape that are much greener or consistently wet and muddy. Underground leaks can be difficult to identify and may need to be located by a specialist
- Use check valves – If your sprinkler heads leak after the zone has completed its cycle, the system is wasting water. Heads with built-in check valves keep the water from draining from the pipe
- Reduce watering of established shrubs – Most trees, once established, do not need supplemental water
- Use rain sensors – Rain sensors automatically turn off the sprinkler system when it is raining outside.
- Cap sprinkler heads – Sprinkler heads that are no longer needed can be capped to adjust watering schedules during the season.
Annual Sprinkler System Maintenance
Let one of our experts come take care of your sprinkler system repairs and maintenance in Overland Park or Olathe. Our Nationally Certified Irrigation Technician will provide repairs, one-time adjustments, or season-long care. No matter what level of service you need, Custom Lawn can help.
- Spring start-up – have one of Custom Lawn’s professional irrigation technicians start your system in the spring. We will catch any problems early on before too much water is wasted.
- Regular maintenance checks – during our regular maintenance checks (about every four weeks) we will troubleshoot any problems we find to keep your system running smoothly and efficiently.
- Winterization – blowing out all of the moisture will prevent any freezing problems with water in the lines. We make sure your system is water and danger free.
By using the latest in advanced irrigation control technology, adjusting your schedule regularly and properly maintaining your sprinkler system, you will help ensure the health of your landscape while conserving water and saving money. Call Custom Lawn and Landscape for sprinkler system maintenance for your Overland Park or Olathe home and we will be glad to maintain and service your sprinkler system!
